Beware of Phone-Based "Vishing" Scams

The FDIC has warned numerous times about "phishing" scams in which crooks send e-mails claiming to be from legitimate financial institutions, companies or government agencies asking consumers to "verify" or "re-submit" confidential information such as bank account and credit card numbers, Social Security Numbers, passwords and personal identification numbers. (The term "phishing" is a high-tech variation of the concept of "fishing" for personal information.) Now, the FDIC wants you to know about "vishing," which stands for "voice phishing."

In the typical vishing scam, consumers receive an e-mail supposedly from a financial institution or government agency asking them to call a phone number to provide bank account and other "needed" information using their telephone keypad. Once entered into the automated response system, the information can be used by the crooks to gain unauthorized access to bank accounts or commit identity theft.

The bottom line: Don't call telephone numbers provided in unsolicited e-mails to provide personal identification. When in doubt, contact your financial institution using the telephone number provided in your monthly statements or on the back of your credit or debit card — NOT the number listed in the e-mail.